Unless otherwise indicated herein, the elements described in this section are not prior art to the claims and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Settlement of financial transactions between two parties is generally performed by means of cash or various payment instruments such as, for example, debit cards, credit cards, cheques and electronic transfers of funds. Security concerns have lessened the attractiveness of transaction settlement by means of cash, while cheques and electronic transfers are inconvenient to use, as well as time-consuming.
While debit and credit card payments are undoubtedly more convenient to make and/or safer than cash, cheque or electronic transfer payments, it is not uncommon for consumers to carry multiple different credit and debit cards simultaneously, which may become inconvenient as such number of cards increases.
Electronic wallets have become increasingly popular as a means of settling financial transactions. Such electronic wallets are primarily useful for making low-value payments (i.e. micropayments). A further disadvantage of electronic wallets is a lack of widespread acceptance by merchants.
The applicant has appreciated the desirability of a simpler and more efficient process for settling financial transactions than those described above.